Maternal obesity and attention-related symptoms in the preterm offspring

Abstract Background Maternal pre-pregnancy obesity, in term-born children, is associated with an increased risk of attention problems, however this relationship has not been explored among children born extremely preterm. Aim To estimate the risk of attention problems at age 10 years in children born very preterm to overweight(i.e., body mass index (BMI) 25–29 kg/m 2 ) and obese (i.e., BMI ≥ 30 kg/m 2 ) women relative to the risk among children born to women who were neither overweightnor obese (i.e. BMI 2 ). Study design Multi-center prospective cohort study. Methods A total of 764 children born before the 28th week of gestation and whose mother's pre-pregnancy height and pre-pregnancy weight were obtained at birth had an IQ ≥ 70 at age 10 years when parents and teachers completed Child Symptom Inventory-4 questionnaires that included items about the presence of ADHD. Results Compared to children whose mother's pre-pregnancy weight was in the normal range (BMI 2 ), children were at increased risk of parent-identified ADHD behaviors if their mother was overweight(odds ratio (OR) = 1.9; 95% confidence interval (CI): 1.1, 3.3), or obese (OR = 2.3; 95% CI: 1.4, 3.9). They were not at increased risk of teacher-identified ADHD characteristics if their mother was overweightbefore her pregnancy (OR = 1.0; 95% CI: 0.6, 1.8), or obese (OR = 1.0; 95% CI: 0.6, 1.6). Conclusion Maternal overweightand obesity are associated with increased risk of parent-identified ADHD characteristics at 10 years of age in children born extremely preterm.